97 Days
by clair beaubien
Summary: Missing scene to the final episode of the series. Daniel thinks he's discovered something new and amazing. Teal'c is less than impressed.


Ninety-seven days.

We have been stranded aboard this ship in this time dilation for ninety-seven days. My experience with kel-no-reem has given me the tools of recollection and relaxation to endure this time with relative equanimity, but even my patience is lately being tried by my companions.

Col. Mitchell continues to importune General Landry – indeed, anyone who will listen – that we must do something, anything, no matter how foolhardy, to relieve our current situation.

Col. Carter reminds us on a regular basis that despite how diligently she continues to strive, she is no closer to remedying our situation. One does not need to hear this information as often as she repeats it but she repeats it nonetheless.

General Landry has been most patient and calming in this prolonged crisis, but I find after all this time, even his even demeanor has a wearing effect on my disposition. One must take life as it comes, but one may on occasion rail at the circumstances.

Vala Maldoran is a pleasant companion; she can find humor in the most dismal circumstances, and she commiserates our plight in a manner that is at once truthful yet satiric.

In this entire situation, DanielJackson has been the most contained and circumspect of us all. He has devoted himself to study and reflection, and that quiet acceptance of fate that has always been one of his most important strengths.

In the relatively short amount of time we have been in this time dilation, time on earth has progressed without us at a prodigious rate of speed. Though we have spent but three months here, everyone we knew on earth has either passed on or has aged to the point of passing. I cannot help but think that I will never see Ryac again, I will never have the pleasure and honor to see him present himself to me as a father in his own right. Bratac may yet survive, but without his symbiote even he will have aged a great deal. And General O'Neill has certainly passed on to what he would refer to as "The Great Fishing Hole in the Sky."

We have been on this ship for only ninety-seven days, yet the world we departed from has changed unutterably.

These thoughts are on my mind as I begin another day. With no sun, days and evenings are approximate, but I exit my cabin and enter the communal men's room down the hall. It is my wish to remain solitary as long as possible, until I can bring my thoughts to happier activities.

DanielJackson has preceded me in the men's room and is about to exit. His hair is damp as though he has just taken a shower. His clothes are fresh and appear to be crisply ironed. He has shaved and has quite definitely applied aftershave to his person. He must have had the computer create that for him, the same way Col. Carter created a cello and General Landry created a chess set.

I assume that DanielJackson is merely trying to go about his time here with as much normalcy as possible, that that is why he has paid so much attention to his hygiene and appearance.

Apparently I am wrong.

"Teal'c!" He greets me with more enthusiasm than I believe I have tolerance for. "It's a great morning, isn't? At least I think it's morning! It's so hard to tell." He consults his wrist watch, but even that is accomplished with a considerable grin on his face. Were I one to indulge in such metaphors, I would be inclined to say he was beaming.

"What is so great about it?" I must ask.

"Everything! Just – everything! Another day to live Teal'c. Another day to learn!"

"DanielJackson, did you perhaps instruct the computer to synthesize an hallucinogenic compound of which you ingested mass quantities?"

I have found that when any question is placed before DanielJackson, even a facetious one, he must always ascertain the possibility of its validity before he answers.

"Uh – no. Not that I know of."

"What then would be the cause of your unwarranted fervor?"

His grin increases and were I one to indulge in metaphors to say he was beaming, I would say that it was blinding.

"She loves me! Vala loves me!" I receive this intelligence with as much surprise as if he'd imparted to me that water is two parts hydrogen to one part oxygen. "I can't believe it! I mean I know she's been trying to seduce me since I met her but I always just thought she was bored or trying to use me or that it was just an automatic reaction on her part as a way to deal with new situations or stress and I never wanted to get involved because I really just – I just didn't want to be used or be just a diversion and I just really so did not want to risk getting my heart broken and it's taken me a long time after Sha'are to be able to admit that I want that back in my life, love, real love and then last night Vala tried to seduce me again and I was just so mean to her because I thought she was just having on with me but I could see that I hurt her, really hurt her, and that's when it – duh! – finally occurred to me that she really loves me only she never learned the usual ways of expressing love and maybe her overzealous attempts were just as much to protect her heart as my continued reluctance has been to protect mine..."

DanielJackson continues in this manner, gesturing to emphasize his enthusiasm and delight. I keep my attention focused on him, but I cease to listen. I wonder instead how he can speak that long without drawing breath. Finally, he ends with the emphatic and totally non-climactic declaration,

"And you know what? I realize – I love her too!"

I have nothing to say in reply to this. Again, it is as surprising to me as the knowledge that an incoming tide follows an outgoing tide. When I do not offer the apparently expected response, DanielJackson appears crestfallen.

"What? You knew?" He asks.

"DanielJackson, I believe there is only one person within two galaxies who was not cognizant of your feelings for Vala Maldoran." Having said that, I place my hands on his shoulders and turn him so that he is facing the mirror over the sink. Then I turn to find an unoccupied restroom on an unoccupied deck of the ship. "Have a nice day, DanielJackson."

The end.


End file.
